Wire winding attachment for tractors



ct. 9, 1956 P, FREY ET AL 2,765,991

WIRE WINDING ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Filed July 1, 1955 2 Sheets$heet 1IN VEN TORS Jmmm S. FQEY 57/ BY L wmmmz P. FmEY vflmklm AT To 2N EYS L.P. FREY EI'AL WIRE WINDING ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Filed July 1, 1955 2Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS Jummm $.Fmav &' mwmEMcE R FREY 2,7 65,991 WIREWINDING ATTACHMENT FOR TRACTORS Lawrence P. Frey, Highland, and JulianS. Frey, Pocahontas, Ill.

Application July 1, 1955, Serial No. 519,432 6 Claims. (Cl. 24290) Thisinvention relates to tractor attachments, and more particularly to awire winding attachment connectable to a power take-off shaft of aconventional tractor.

Wire windin attachments for tractors are not new per se, but heretofore,have in general been quite bulky, being often belt driven or otherwiseexpensively and complexly designed.

The main object of the present invention is to provide a generallyimproved wire winding attachment, that will be simple in construction,thus permitting it to be constructed at a very low cost as compared tosimilar devices previously marketed. As more specific objects of theinvention, it is proposed to provide an attachment as stated which canbe swiftly connected directly to the power take-off shaft, and willinclude means normally effecting a direct drive between the shaft of thewinder and the power take-off shaft, but which will be adapted to permitslippage of the winding drum should forces acting on the drum tending tohold the same against rotation increase above a predetermined value.

Another object is to provide a device as stated which will permit thewinding of long lengths of wire in a very short time.

A further object is to provide a device as stated charac terized by itsease of attachment to or detachment from the power take-off shaft, andfurther characterized by its adaptability for separation of thecomponent parts of the winder, for replacement or repair of any of thecomponents.

Another object is to provide a device as stated which is particularlywell adapted to wind smooth electric fence wire, but which will be sodesigned as, with necessary modifications in the size of certaincomponents thereof, to wind other types of wire, such as barbed wire.

Other objects willappear from the following description, the claimsappended thereto, and from the annexed drawings in which like referencecharacters designate like parts throughout the several views andwherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational View of the wire winding attachmentformed according to the present invention, as it appears when attachedto a tractor, the tractor being shown fragmentarily and in section;

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a still further enlarged, exploded perspective view of theattachment per se;

Figure a is a fragmentary perspective view of a modified construction;

Figure 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Figure 4'; and

Figure 6 is a section on line 6-6 of Figure 5.

on line 2 2 of The reference numeral 19 generally designates a conventional tractor, while at in Figures 1-3, a winding to the presentinvention.

The tractor includes the usual power take-off shaft, indicated at 14,this being a spline shaft, while the winding attachment includes, at itsinner end, a relatively short sleeve 16 having an end to end axial bore18 formed with 12 there has been designated, attachment formed accordingrates Patent spline teeth 18' meshing with those of the power take-offshaft. The teeth of the bore 18 would of course be standard per se, tomatch those of the standard power take-off shaft, and to connect thewinding attachment to the power take-off shaft for operation thereby, itis merely necessary that the sleeve 16 be slipped onto the powertake-off shaft from the right in Figure 2, to its Figure 1 or Figure 2position. Thereafter, a set screw 20, threaded radially, inwardly of thewall of the sleeve, is engaged against the take-off shaft to secure thesleeve firmly to the power take-off for rotation conjointly therewith.

Designated at 22 is a circular, flat end wall of the sleeve, and asshown in Figure 2, one end of the sleeve projects beyond the outer endof the power take-oft shaft, this being the end to which the end wall 22is secured. End wall 22 has a marginal series of smooth-walled openings,receiving connecting bolts 24 threadable into a corresponding series ofthreaded recesses 26 formed in the outer end of the sleeve about theaxial bore thereof. The bolts have heads bearing against the outersurface of the end wall, so as to effect a fixed connection of the endwall to the sleeve.

An elongated shaft 28 is provided in the attachment, the sleeve 22 beingformed with a center opening receiving the inner end of the shaft 23,the shaft being welded to the sleeve after being inserted in said centeropening as shown in Figure 2.

Fitted onto the shaft 28 is a washer 30 (Figure 3), and after saidwasher has been slipped onto the shaft 28, a larger diameter washer 32is placed upon the shaft, said washer 32 engaging against the washer 30and the washer 3t} engaging against end wall 22 in the operativerelationship of the components of the device, as shown in Figure 2.

After the washer 32 has been placed on shaft 28, a compression spring 34is fitted onto the shaft 28, abutting at one end against the washer 32.Thereafter, a winding drum 3-1: is slipped onto the shaft 28, saidwinding drum having a tubular, open-ended core, rotatable upon andslidable in an axial direction in respect to the shaft 28.

Spring 34 abuts at the end thereof remote from washer 32 against theadjacent head of the drum, and abutting against the other head of thedrum is a second compression spring 38, the other end of whichabuts'against a washer ill against which bears a nut 42 engaged withthreads 44 formed uponthe outer end of the shaft 28.

The nut 42 with its associated washerdtl, and the spacer collar 30 andwasher 32, cooperate to define spacedabutments upon the shaft 28, withthe abutment consti-,

tuted by the nut and the washer 40 being adjustable longitudinally ofthe shaft. As a result, the springs 34, 38 can both be placed underselected, adjusted tension, and constitute a driving connectionbetweenthe shaft'28 and the drum which driving connection is, in effect,of the slip clutch type. a

In use of the device, the sleeve 16, preassembled with the end wall andthe drum, springs, and-the described abutments, is slipped onto thepower take-off shaft whenever it is desired to wind a length ofwire W.The set screw 2%) is then tightened, and the device is ready for use.With the tractor standing still, the power take-off shaft is rotated,and the wire will be wound smoothly upon the drum. The deviceillustrated is particularly designed for the winding of electric fencewire, but the device can be made larger to accommodate barbed wire,without change in the basic construction illustrated and described.

Should the drag upon the drum increase above a predetermined value,tending to hold the drum against rotation relative to the shaft 28 tosuch an extent as to overcome the frictional engagement between thesprings and' the drum heads, the shaft 28 will continue to rotate, with!out rotating the drum, so that there will be no possibility of damage ofany of the component parts of the device,

or of placing too great a load upon the power take-off shaft. As soon assaid forces decrease below said value, the drum and shaft will again berotated conjointly. Should it be desired to make adjustments such thatthe value of said forces tending to cause relative rotation between theshaft and drum is lowered or increased, said adjustments can be swiftlymade by threading of the nut 42 toward or away from the drum, as thecase may be, to place the springs under greater or lower tension,Whichever is desired.

In Figures 4-6, there is shown a modified construction, with themodification being confined to the sleeve and end wall. In this form ofthe invention, the power take-off shaft has been designated at 46, andthe sleeve 48 is formed at one end with a circumferential series oflongitudinally extending slots 50 opening upon the tractoradjacentextremity of the sleeve. Slidably fitted onto the slotted end of thesleeve is a collar 54, having a circumferential series of radiallyextending, threaded openings receiving clamping screws 56. The provisionof the slots 50 define, between adjacent slots, longitudinal springtongues on the sleeve, and when the sleeve is fitted onto the powertake-off shaft, one threads the screws 56 inwardly, to force saidtongues radially, inwardly into frictional engagement with the powertake-off shaft. To complete the driving connection between the sleeveand power take-off shaft, there is provided a set screw 52 threadablethrough the wall of sleeve 48 directly against the power take-off shaft.

The end of the sleeve projecting outwardly from the power take-off shaftis formed open, and engaged in this end of the sleeve is an end wall 58,which is welded to the sleeve to close the sleeve at its projecting end.A shaft 60, corresponding to the shaft 28, is integral or otherwise maderigid with the end wall 58 centrally thereof, and the spring 34 isabutted at its opposite ends against the end wall 58 and the adjacentdrum head, so that in this form of the invention, the end wall itselfconstitutes the inner abutment of the device.

As to the remaining parts of the device, these are formed similarly tothe corresponding parts of the first form of the invention.

The construction illustrated and described (reference here being had toboth forms) is particularly adapted for winding a substantial length ofwire in a minimum amount of time, and it is believed to be an importantcharacteristic of the inventon that the construction is exceedinglysimple, being devoid of special belt drives or other complex linkageheretofore used in devices of this type. Still further, the severalcomponents of the device can be readily disassembled, for replacement orrepair of any part, it being merely necessary to remove the nut 42,after which the drum, washers, and springs can be readily slipped offthe shaft 28 or 60 as the case may be. Still further, the devicepreassembled, can be swiftly attached to the power take-off shaft, andcan be detached from said shaft with equal facility.

In use of the device, one operates the power take-off shaft with thetractor standing still, as previously mentioned, the free end of thewire coming toward the tractor. It is desirable in the circumstancesthat an object be placed on the free end of the wire, so that it remainsin view, and a burlap sack or similar object can be used for thispurpose. This places a slight drag upon the wire, and is desirable toprevent overrunning of the wire during the winding operation, thusinsuring the wire being tightly coiled about the core of the drum as thedrum rotates.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confinedto the specific use or uses thereof described above since it may beutilized for any urpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the inventionto be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated anddescribed, since such construction is only intended to be illustrativeof the principles, it being considered that the invention comprehendsany minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scopeof the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A wire winder for attachment to a power take-off shaft of a tractor,comprising: a sleeve proportioned to receive said shaft; means to engagethe sleeve with the shaft for rotation therewith; a shaft rigid with andprojecting from the sleeve; a winding drum rotatably mounted on thesecond shaft; and a driving connection between the second shaft anddrum, arranged to normally effect conjoint rotation of the drum andsecond shaft and adapted to disengage the second shaft and drum from adrivingdriven relationship responsive to the increase of forces actingon the drum tending to hold the same against rotation, above apredetermined value.

2. A wire winder for attachment to a power take-off shaft of a tractor,comprising: a sleeve open at one end to receive said shaft and adaptedfor being fixedly secured to the shaft for rotation therewith; anelongated shaft concentric with and projecting from the sleeve, thesecondnamed shaft being fixedly secured to the sleeve for rotationtherewith about an axis common to that about which the power take-offshaft rotates; a winding drum rotatably mounted upon the second shaftintermediate the opposite ends thereof; means at opposite sides of thewinding drum upon the second-named shaft defining collar like abutmentson the second-named shaft; and a pair of springs on the second-namedshaft and held under compression between the opposite ends of theWinding drum and said abutrnents, for effecting a driving connectionbetween the second-named shaft and drum adapted for effecting conjointrotation of the drum and the second named shaft under normal conditions,said springs being tensioned to effect disengagement of the second-namedshaft and drum from a driving-driven relationship responsive to theincrease of forces acting on the drum tending to hold the same againstrotation with the second named shaft, above a predetermined value.

3. A wire winder for attachment to a power take-off shaft of a tractor,comprising: a sleeve open at one end to receive said shaft and adaptedfor being fixedly secured to the shaft for rotation therewith; anelongated shaft concentric with and projecting from the sleeve, thesecond-named shaft being fixedly secured to the sleeve for rotationtherewith about an axis common to that about which the power take-offshaft rotates; a winding drum rotatably mounted upon the second shaftintermediate the opposite ends thereof; means at opposite sides of thewinding drum upon the second-named shaft defining collar-like abutmentson the second-named shaft; and a pair of springs on the second-namedshaft and held under compression between the opposite ends of thewinding drum and said abutments, for effecting a driving connectionbetween the second-named shaft and drum adapted for effecting conjointrotation of the drum and the secondnamed shaft under normal conditions,said springs being tensioned to effect disengagement of the second-namedshaft and drum from a driving-driven relationship responsive to theincrease of forces acting on the drum tending to hold the same againstrotation with the secondnamed shaft, above a predetermined value, atleast one of said abutments being mounted for adjustment longitudinallyof the second-named shaft, to place said springs under a selected,adjusted tension.

4. A wire winder for attachment to a power take-off shaft of a tractor,comprising: a sleeve proportioned to receive said shaft and adapted forrotation with the shaft, said sleeve at one end projecting beyond theshaft and including at said one end an end wall; an elongated shaftcoaxial with the power take-off shaft and fixedly secured to said endwall, the second-named shaft projecting outwardly from the end wall; awinding drum including a tubular core receiving the second-named shaft,said core being slidable and rotatable relative to the second-namedshaft; abutments spaced longitudinally of the second named shaft andextending circumferentially thereof at opposite ends of the drum, one ofsaid abutments being mounted for adjustment upon the second-named shaftin a direction axially of the second-named shaft; and compressionsprings on said second-named shaft and abutting at their opposite endsagainst the respective abutments and the ends of the drum, so as toeffect, under normal conditions, conjoint rotation of the drum and thesecond-named shaft, said springs being adapted to permit rotation of thesecond-named shaft relative to the drum responsive to the increase,above a predetermined value, of forces acting on the drum tending tohold the same against rotation with the second-named shaft.

5. A wire winder for attachment to a power takeoff shaft of a tractor,comprising: a sleeve proportioned to receive said shaft and adapted forrotation with the shaft, said sleeve at one end projecting beyond theshaft and including at said one end an end wall; an elongated shaftcoaxial with the power take-off shaft and fixedly secured to said endwall, the second-named shaft projecting outwardly from the end wall; awinding drum including a tubular core receiving the second-named shaft,said core being slidable and rotatable relative to the second-namedshaft; abutments spaced longitudinally of the secondnamed shaft andextending circumferentially thereof at opposite ends of the drum, one ofsaid abutments being mounted for adjustment upon the second-named shaftin a direction axially of the second-named shaft; and compressionsprings on said second-named shaft and abutting at their opposite endsagainst the respective abutments and the ends of the drum, so as toeffect, under normal conditions, conjoint rotation of the drum and thesecond named-shaft, said springs being adapted to permit rotation of thesecond-named shaft relative to the drum responsive to the increase,above a predetermined value, of forces acting on the drum tending tohold the same against rotation with the second named shaft, saidadjustable abutment being formed as a nut, the secondnamed shaft havingthreads at that end thereof remote from the sleeve, said threadsengaging the nut for effecting said longitudinal adjustment of the nutresponsive to rotation of the same upon the second-named shaft.

6. A wire winder for attachment to a power take-off shaft of a tractor,comprising: a sleeve proportioned to receive said shaft and adapted tobe connected to said shaft for rotation therewith, the sleeve projectingat one end beyond the power take-off shaft and including at said endthereof a marginal series of threaded recesses; a disc-like end wallengaged against said projecting end of said sleeve; bolts threaded intosaid recesses of the sleeve through the end wall, to fixedly anddetachably connect the end wall to the sleeve; an elongated shaftfixedly secured to the end wall cent-rally thereof and extendingoutwardly in coaxial alignment with power takeoff shaft; a drum mountedupon the second-named shaft for rotation and for slidable movementlongitudinally of the second-named shaft; a pair of abutments mountedupon the second-named shaft at opposite ends of the drum, one of saidabutments being adjustable longitudinally of the second-named shaft; andcompression springs on said second-named shaft and engaged between therespective abutments and the adjacent ends of the drum, to normallyeffect conjoint rotation of the drum and the second-named shaft, saidsprings being adapted to disengage the second shaft and drum from adrivingdriven relationship responsive to the increase of forces above apredetermined value, acting on the drum tending to hold the same againstrotation with the secondnamed shaft.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,205,803 Skjonhaug Nov. 21, 1916 1,976,314 White Oct. 9, 1934 2,704,191Schley et al Mar. 15, 1955

